Six Things Every Independent Advisor Should Demand from Their Home Office

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Are you missing out on growth due to a lack of support from your home office? 

Many Financial Advisors go independent for more freedom and the opportunity to increase their take-home pay while building enterprise value. But they often transition to an RIA or broker-dealer expecting a level of support that never materializes. 

One reason this occurs is the lack of ability to even identify areas where they are missing support – because you don’t see what you’re missing, and you don’t know what you don’t know. 

This blog explores six core deliverables Independent Advisors should be receiving from their home office to ensure they maximize their success.  

1. Community 

A recent study from Fidelity found that 50% of Advisors go independent to access a better firm culture. But most find themselves increasingly isolated, with fewer opportunities to connect with other Advisors.  

This puts them at a distinct disadvantage against Advisors who learn from their peers. Consider how long it would take you to test 10 different investment platforms to determine which best serves your needs; then consider how much easier it would be to simply collate the experiences of 50 other growth-minded Advisors. 

The reality is a strong network enables you to share opportunities, learn best practices and stay on top of important professional trends.  

What should you demand?  

Advisors should expect their home office to connect them with like-minded professionals, organize networking events, study groups and host conferences – or find a partner that will. 

2. Client Service and Admin Support  

Strong client servicing can define the success of an Advisor. In fact, recent research shows that a positive client experience is directly correlated with faster growth. But managing these relationships is time-consuming – and many Advisors struggle to balance client service with other tasks like deepening engagement with clients or prospecting for new ones. 

This is exacerbated by the lack of operational support they receive from their current partner firms. There are often burdensome processes even to just open new accounts, and few resources available to help with mundane and routine tasks. 

What should you demand? 

At RFG Advisory, we empower our Advisor partners using RFG Talent. This provides extra support to ensure they offer outstanding client experience:  

  • We source, hire and train teams of licensed Client Service Associates (CSAs) and Admins to work with our Advisor Partners. 
  • Advisors can choose to leverage these CSAs in fractional shares, depending on their business needs. 
  • These teams are employees of RFG – which means they benefit from our resources, training, and health benefits.  

3. Operational Support 

Advisors need dedicated, trained staff to work with the numerous firms that process the trades, move the money, and provide performance reporting for their clients. But a shocking number find their home office provides almost no custodial support at all.  

Advisors routinely lack support when handling NIGO’s or complex transactions. They spend up to 41% of their time on administrative and office management tasks – compared to just 35% spent actually building client relationships.

This situation produces a net loss for the business. Simply hiring the right support team to take on these tasks would free hours that could be used to grow your client base and pay for the extra employees many times over.  

What should you demand? 

Advisors should expect Operational support from any “partner” firm. At RFG Advisory, our Operations team does all your custodial work – giving you the freedom to focus on building stronger client relationships.  

4. Technology 

From streamlining client management to accessing a wider range of investment options, technology is essential to stay competitive in an increasingly digital future. But most firms lack the knowledge or access to provide cutting-edge tech – and their Advisors lose out as a result.  

This is not just a question of procurement: Even if Advisors’ home office purchases best-in-breed solutions, they often don’t get them integrated in a way that gets the data flowing. As a result, Advisors are left with disconnected tech that their internal team lacks the expertise to integrate. 

What should you demand? 

Advisors should recognize the crucial role technology plays in their future, and demand: 

  • Best-in-breed technology: This should not just be a single solution but a fully integrated stack that unlocks benefits across every area of your business. 
  • Seamless integration: Your CRM, marketing engine, Investment Management portal, and client facing portal should interoperate to enable data to flow freely – and ultimately create a single source of truth for both individual clients and your own business growth. 
  • Comprehensive training: Your firm should help you and your employees master the tech they provide to ensure you get the maximum use out of it. 
  • Tech support: You shouldn’t be calling Salesforce to solve problems – your home office should provide experts that are readily available to take care of any issues you face. 

5. Compliance Support 

A recent study found that some Advisors spend one day per week dealing with compliance issues. Worse still, their home office does little to lighten the burden. Our experience suggests that many firms’ Chief Compliance Officers are either unskilled or unavailable, and Advisors are not provided with updates about the latest SEC or FINRA regulations.  

This creates a lot of compliance risk, with the potential for hefty fines or professional penalties, all of which could easily be avoided with the right support. 

What should you demand? 

The ideal home office should make compliance seamless with: 

  • Always-on compliance support: You should always have access to an expert compliance team. At RFG, our Chief Compliance Officer Rick Ohlrich is always on the line to share his expertise, which is based on over 20 years of RIA and FINRA experience. 
  • Monthly SEC and FINRA updates: You should never have to go out of your way to access key information around compliance. RFG covers this need with monthly Town Halls that are free to all our Advisor Partners, as well as our monthly Compliance Soup podcast. 

6. Marketing and Branding 

Many Advisors know marketing is essential to differentiate your services and accelerate growth. The majority of Advisory businesses still lack sophisticated digital marketing or distinctive branding – meaning those that seize the opportunity will gain a disproportionate advantage. 

Yet most broker-dealers and RIAs do not provide this support. Many Advisors find they cannot even establish their own DBA, and there is a lack of education around, or access to, digital marketing strategies and tools. 

What should you demand? 

Advisors should expect their partner firm to invest in their growth. This should include: 

  • Branding support: Your home office should give you the freedom to develop a distinctive brand, as well as helping you develop the materials and positioning to make it grow. 
  • Marketing planning: You should expect support when creating a robust marketing calendar and yearly growth plan. 
  • Marketing tech: The right firm will help you leverage cutting-edge marketing tech. At RFG, our Advisor Partners gain access to Pathfinder – our award-winning technology platform that provides Advisors with a large selection of compliance-approved campaigns they can leverage for prospecting, engaging with existing clients, and managing their ongoing communications. 

Independent Doesn’t Have to Mean Alone 

Ultimately, Advisors should demand more from their partner – and that is why RFG Advisory exists. From a cutting-edge tech stack that streamlines your back-office to comprehensive operational and marketing support, we help our Advisor Partners focus on growing their business – without compromise.  

What is your firm doing for you? If the answer isn’t “all six of these things,” RFG can change that. 

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